1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a droplet ejecting device and a printing device.
2. Related Art
In recent years, droplet ejecting devices that form an image or pattern on a recording medium using UV-curable ink, which cures upon irradiation with ultraviolet light, have been receiving attention. UV-curable ink, which dries extremely slowly until irradiated with ultraviolet light, at which point it rapidly cures, has properties favorable for use as printer inks. Because no solvent is evaporated when it cures, this type of ink also has the advantage of placing little burden upon on the environment.
UV-curable ink also demonstrates high bondability to a variety of recording media depending on vehicle composition. It also possesses many superior properties, such as chemical stability after curing, adhesiveness, chemical resistance, weather resistance, friction resistance, and the ability to withstand outdoor environments. For this reason, apart from thin, sheet-like recording media such as paper, resin film, metal foil, and the like, UV-curable ink can also form images on materials with surfaces having some degree of three-dimensionality, such as recording media labels, textile products, and the like.
In droplet ejecting devices of this sort, a configuration is utilized wherein ink stored in a liquid reservoir, such as, for example, an ink pack or an ink cartridge, is guided to a pressure chamber in a recording head, a pressure fluctuation is generated in the ink within the pressure chamber by a pressure source such as a piezoelectric vibrator driven by a drive signal applied thereto, and ink is ejected from a nozzle by controlling the pressure fluctuation. The recording head is mounted on a moving body called a carriage, and ejects ink while traveling in relation to the recording medium. Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application Publication No. 2003-251822 describes a technique in which an ink tank is mounted on a carriage as a liquid reservoir.